ties that bind
by samanddianefan10
Summary: A sequel to Iloveromance's Soaring Hearts. Set in the future, Sam gets more than he bargained for at a Red Sox Reunion. Turns out it's a reunion of a completely different sort.


**A/N This is a sequel to Iloveromance's Soaring Hearts. Thank you for the lovely present, and I hope you like what I did with it. Expect a sequel to your other cheers story as well soon!**

"Come on Grandma, you promised!" Little Samantha pleaded for the fifteenth time, at least, that day. Diane was trying hard to be patient, but it had been so long since she'd flown. Not since that night...

"Grandma thought about making you some cookies instead. Wouldn't that be even nicer?"

"No. You promised we'd be there for the baseball reunion for Granddad. You know I don't even remember him!"

And for that, it was Diane's fault. She'd never told Samantha or Samantha's mother Olivia the reason that they'd moved to California. By car, of course. If there was anything Diane could do to dissuade her only grandchild from this event, she'd tried it. How in the world would she explain her presence- or Samantha and Olivia's existance- to Sam Malone?

She remembered it all so clearly.

_Her head rose as her eyes met his. "What did you just say?"_

_"I said... it'll make one hell of a story to tell our grandchildren one day."_

_"Our... Grandchildren?"_

_"Or children. I mean, I don't think I can wait that long to tell this story again."_

_She stared to cry again and threw her arms around him "Children? Oh Sam, you do love me!"_

_"Of course I love you Honey, but-."_

_"You said our children. Does that mean that what you said was true? Your deepest desire is really to marry me?"_

_"Oh... Well, yeah. I mean, I love you so why not?"_

_She took his face in her hands and kissed him tenderly. "I love you too Sam. But I can't marry you. Not right now._"

After they returned from that flight, Diane had taken off. And apparently, she had been carrying more baggage than the airline, should she have chosen one, would have checked for. Her and Sam's daughter Olivia was conceived that night, a fact that she'd hidden for twenty five years. And they were talking about grandchildren- how oddly predictable. But Diane had sworn she would never be a burden to anyone, let alone Sam, so she chose to raise Olivia alone. When Olivia had gotten pregnant at seventeen, it was a surprise, but so was the fate that she'd chosen for herself.

Olivia was about at Samantha's age when she'd discovered the truth about her parentage. Not the entire truth, that was far too complicated, but she'd deducted that the great Red Sox relief pitcher Sam Malone was her father due to all of the memorabilia she'd found in Diane's attic. Children were naturally curious so Diane had no choice but to tell her daughter the truth. Over the years Olivia had been curious, of course, but she'd accepted Diane's explanation that things were far too complicated between her mother and Sam for anything else to happen.

This reunion, once found out about, was Olivia's idea. She decided it was time for her daughter to know the truth, and so all bets were off. Tonight, Samantha was going to meet her grandfather for the first time, and for better or worse, Diane would have a lot of explaining to do.

00000000000

Their eyes met with that recolonization mixed with sadness and familiarity. Time had been good to the both of them, Sam with his silver fox look (and it worked for him!) and Diane with the same lithe figure she'd always kept. There were so many things she wanted to say to him, but Samantha's welcoming embrace of her grandfather was definitely an ice breaker. Caught off guard, Sam looked at Diane, wondering what the hell was going on.

"Well well if it isn't the famous Sam Malone. Maybe that line would have worked better twenty years ago- when you were still famous," Diane teased with the same gleam in her eyes that he'd always loved about her.

"I'd say they really lowered the standards for this party, hell, even Cliffy got an invite, but when I saw that they let you in I realized that they had no standards whatsoever."

"Now, now Sam, behave. Little ears."

Sam pulled away from his unbeknownst granddaughter. "Yeah, I caught on to that. What is going on?".

"Hi Grandpa," Samantha hugged him again, not wanting to let go.

"Excuse me, Diane. Did she say, Grandpa? I know I'm starting to show my age...which is forty if any of the chicks ask...but grandpa?"

Diane sighed. In a strange way it was nice and reassuring to know that he hadn't changed, all that much anyways.

Olivia walked up and held out her hand. "Sam Malone?"

"That'd be me."

"I'm Olivia Malone. I believe I'm your daughter."

He looked at Diane then looked at his newfound family. It was a good thing Olivia had introduced herself because he'd been about to hit on her. The good looks, the charm, the ease with people...somehow Sam didn't disbelieve Olivia's shocking claim.

"Diane, what's going on here?"

"You know how I left for California, right after our plane trip? Do you also remember how it would be a story to tell our grandchildren? It turns out you were quite the fortuneteller."

"You mean...she's ...they...she's..."  
Diane nodded. "Sam, they're your family."

"You're mistaken about one thing."

"If you're going to deny then I can offer proof...why would I come all this way if I had something to hide?"

"No sweetheart. I mean, you're family. You're all family. You've always been family, Diane, Even if it's taken me a long time to realize it."

She broke out into that famous grin of hers and clapped her hands. "Oh Sam...do you mean it? We're really and truly family?"

Samantha ran back into her grandfather's welcoming embrace. "Sure looks like it, doesn't it," he laughed nervously.

Diane knew right then and there she would never fly again. She'd found her home, and there would be no more looking back.

The end


End file.
